This week, the Republican side of the ballot for Michigan governor came into closer focus with nominee John James selecting state Rep. Jay DeBoyer as his running mate, questions remain over who will be on ticket for Democratic-side.
WKAR Capitol Correspondent Colin Jackson joined Morning Edition host Melorie Begay to talk about James' pick and who Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson might choose as her running mate.
Interview Transcript:
Melorie Begay: This week, the Republican ticket in Michigan's governor's race came into sharper focus. Former Congressman John James has picked State Rep. Jay DeBoyer as his running mate. Meanwhile, Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, the Democratic nominee, has a bit more time to weigh her options.
Here to talk about developments in the governor's race is WKAR Capitol Correspondent Colin Jackson. Colin, thanks for being here.
Colin Jackson: Thanks for having me.
Begay: Former Congressman John James, who's running for Michigan governor, has selected State Rep. Jay DeBoyer as his running mate. You're someone who has been covering the state capital for years, and you know the ins and outs. Who is Jay DeBoyer?
Jackson: This pick shouldn't surprise anybody. Jay DeBoyer is a Republican state representative. He's within James's district. He's in Macomb County, he's a former clerk, and most recently, he's been chair of the House Oversight Committee. And, that's the committee that's really made a name for itself for bringing different department heads.
Think the leader of the Michigan Department of Corrections, or Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, or trying to get Attorney General Dana Nessel before the committee to answer questions and really get grilled by lawmakers. When you think of people who have sway within the Republican Party right now, this is the Michigan Republican Party, he's an up-and-comer, if not already somebody who is already able to bring a lot of people along with them for being conservative.
Begay: This ticket with John James as the governor and Jay DeBoyer as the lieutenant governor, what does this tell us about how John James might lead if elected?
Jackson: I think this is a message of beefing up the conservative-ness of this ticket. John James obviously has been a Republican for a long time, has represented a Republican district in Congress, was the Trump endorsed pick in this primary election. I think for the people who voted against him in the primary, there was still some concerns that he might not be Republican enough, and so I think it's an overture to the more conservative side of the party and of the voter electorate.
What this means for how he plans to govern, I'm not too sure I don't want to put too much stake into these LG picks in terms of like how much influence an LG would have in an administration. A lot of times you see from the campaign trail, people say like, "We'll govern together." But at the end of the day, it is the governor who makes the decisions. It is the governor's name that gets signed under that signs bills into law, and so I think it means there's going to be another conservative voice in this administration if they were to win in November. I don't necessarily know how deeply to read into it.
Begay: James, of course, will face off against Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, who has a bit more time to make her selection for running mate. Colin, who are some of the names being floated around to be her lieutenant governor?
Jackson: Yeah, so this is going to be interesting when it comes out. Some of the names floated around for Secretary Benson have been current state Sen. Sarah Anthony. She's a Lansing senator. She's somebody else who also has some appeal within the party. She's been the Senate Appropriations Chair for the last four years, and so she's been the one really in the rooms negotiating a lot of these state budgets. She's very willing to go before the press and talk.
Some of the other picks she has are including Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks, so that's a potential option. Winnie Brinks has been the first woman to lead the state Senate ever, and so that would be another historic pick, especially for both if her or Anthony were to get picked. This would be a all-woman ticket for the first time in Michigan history, so that would be something interesting to watch. And then another option is former state Senate Minority Leader Jim Ananich from Flint, and he could shore up some of that more moderate side of the party as well.
Begay: Colin Jackson is WKAR's Capitol Correspondent. Thanks for being here, Colin.
Jackson: Thanks for having me.